Chase the Northern Lights
by WolfTooth
Summary: Tino's father passed away recently, and as he was cleaning out his father's things, he found his birth certificate. But everything on it wasn't as it seemed. Please read, I'm horrible with summaries!


A/N: This is loosely based, very loosely, on a book I read called "Let the Northern Lights Erase Your Name" by Vendela Vida. It's a really good book. So you should go read it. This story only has a similar plot line.

I don't own the above book or Hetalia.

Word Count: 5,442

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Twenty-one year old Tino sat up in his bed. He could hear his little brother Peter crying. He quietly got up and made his way towards the fifteen year old's room. Peter was autistic, and Tino had to give him up to the mental center in a couple of days. Tino didn't know if Peter was crying because he would have to leave his big brother, or the fact that their father died just the last week. Either way Tino just held the boy and let him cry.

The only reason the two were in the house was to pack up and clean up. All of Peter's things were in neat little cardboard boxes with crayon doodles and drawings on them that the two of them had done together after they finished packing up the last of his toys and clothes. Peter only had two outfits laid out, one for tomorrow, and one for the next day. Tino felt tears prick at his violet eyes, but he didn't let them free. Tino glanced at the small digital clock that Peter had to have in the room with him. Tino decided that Peter had drifted back off to sleep and set him back down on the bed that just had a pillow and sheet left on it. He pushed back Peter's yellow-blond bangs and kissed his forehead.

When Tino stood back up he sighed and decided to get working on packing up his father's old study. That was the last place that needed packed, and the movers were coming in two days to take the stuff that Tino didn't want to auction off-which wasn't much.

Tino pushed open the large oak doors that led to the study. Everything was right where his father had left it. None of it had been disturbed. Tino looked at all the papers on the desk and realized that he would have to go back downstairs to get a trash bag.

Tino looked at the kitchen counter. The only things on the nice granite were a few trash bags, packing tape, scissors, permanent markers, and a couple of games to keep Peter busy throughout the day. On his way back upstairs, he stopped and looked at the fridge. The only things in it were a few frozen dinners to eat on their last two days. There were also a couple of pictures hanging up there. One of them was a picture of him and Peter on a park bench. The second was from Tino's high school graduation. Tino had an arm wrapped around a younger Peter, the other holding up his diploma. Tino's dad had his large arm wrapped around his shoulders. All three of them were beaming with happiness. Tino smiled, those would be the last things he packed. And they would be placed in his wallet.

Back up in the study, Tino sorted through all of the papers in and on the desk. The majority of the papers were just old receipts from his father's window placing business and just personal notes and such. There were a few valuable papers though, like house deeds and insurance papers. When Tino got to the last drawer in the desk there were only two things in it. Two folders, one that had 'Tino' written on it and the other that had 'Peter' written on it. Those sparked Tino's curiosity so he pulled out the one that said Peter and opened it. The only things it had in it were his birth certificate, and all his medical/shot records. Tino shrugged and decided that it would be a good thing to give the papers to the director at the institution. Tino knew that the same things were probably in his folder, but he opened it just to be sure. Tino pulled out his birth certificate, he actually hadn't ever really looked at it. In the mother slot, was his beautiful mother's name, Brenda Harkki. Harkki was his mother's maiden name. He sighed looking at her name. His mother had ran off whenever Peter was only two. Leaving his dad with him and Peter. He looked down at the father slot. He blinked a couple of times when he read the name on it. The name was not Harold Väinämöinen. It was...Eric Ahonen. He looked up at his name slot. The name up there was not Tino Väinämöinen. It was Tino Ahonen. Tino was speechless. The man he had thought was his dad ever since he could remember wasn't really his dad. Who the hell was this Eric Ahonen person? The name Ahonen didn't register in his mind. Tino shoved the certificate back in the folder and set it aside with the other. Tino finished packing the room with haste. It didn't take long to shove all the books and lamp into boxes and set them on the desk. Tino picked up the two folders and stormed off into his room.

Tino pulled out his laptop and clicked it on. As he waited for it to power up, he checked Peter's birth certificate. On his the mother's name was Brenda Väinämöinen. The father's name was Harold Väinämöinen. And his name was Peter Väinämöinen. Tino couldn't believe it. He wasn't related to his own father. Or well, his thought-to-be father. He put Peter's birth certificate back in the folder and set the folder on the nightstand by his bed.

Tino pulled up the internet and went to Google. He looked at his birth certificate again and typed in the name "Eric Ahonen". The only thing that it pulled up was a poorly designed website for a church in northern Finland. Apparently, the preacher of this church's name is Eric Ahonen. But, Tino wasn't quick to jump to conclusions. Many people share similar names. But, it was worth a shot. Tino still had a bit of money saved up, plus the money he got from his 'dad.' He would just fly to Finland, go up to Tornio, where the church was located. And figure out if Eric Ahonen the preacher was really his father. He booked two flights. One out of the United States to Helsinki, and one out of Helsinki to Kemi, the closest airport to Torino.

The next two days went by quickly. Finishing up the labels on all the packages. And taking Peter and his stuff for the mental institution. Tino and Peter both cried. But Tino knew it was best for Peter. After Tino said his last goodbye to Peter, he asked the head of the institution for a postal address, so he could write to Peter from time-to-time. And, maybe, sometime in the future, Peter could write back to Tino. Whenever Tino had a stable postal address and Peter was able to write nicer, but mainly whenever Tino had a stable postal address.

Tino had his bags packed. He had unpacked all his boxes and bought a very large suitcase. He packed almost all the clothes he had, and a few of his precious belongings. He kept all the money he had on hand in his wallet, he felt safer if the money was always on his person, especially since he had no steady flow of income, he was an unemployed high-school graduate anyways.

Tino put the stuff he wasn't taking back in a box. He picked up his suitcase and rolled it to the kitchen. Where he took off the two pictures. He put the picture of him and Peter in his wallet. And dropped the one of him, Peter, and their 'dad' to the floor. Tino made sure all the lights were out and walked out the door, locking it behind him and slipping the key under the mat, where he told the movers it would be. Tino walked to the inner city, it wasn't that far away, only a half-mile or so and grabbed a taxi to the international airport, where early tomorrow he would fly to Helsinki and then fly to Kemi the day after that.

The flight to Helsinki was long. But for the majority of the flight he slept. He hadn't been able to sleep for a night, so the sleep was well needed. He woke up about thirty minutes to Helsinki, from the flight attendant telling them that they were thirty minutes from Helsinki. Tino looked out the window, he had never been to Finland before, even apparently being born from a Finnish parent. Two, since he knew that his mother had been born in Finland and lived here until she met his 'father.'

Tino exited the plane and picked up his suitcase. His flight didn't leave until noon tomorrow, so he had to go rent a hotel room. Tino went and rented a cheap one. The rooms weren't very nice. But it was cheap, and cheap is what Tino liked. And it wasn't like he would be living there, just one night.

And the second Tino hit the bed, he was out. Tino woke up with a jolt the next morning, he had dreamed about pain, hurt, regret, and betrayal; four things he was feeling. He got up and looked at himself in the mirror. He ran his hands through his hair and sighed. A shower would probably do him good. He picked up his few bathroom things and took a nice, hot shower.

The clock read 9:47 whenever he got finished with his shower. Tino decided it wouldn't hurt to go eat a nice meal before going to the airport.

He just went to a small diner-like restaurant to eat. Tino ordered something simple before paying the check and heading out. And of course, the second he walks out of the restaurant, it starts raining. Tino cursed the weather and trudged out to try and catch a taxi to the airport.

Despite his horrible luck, Tino was able to catch a taxi to the airport and actually arrived with a few minutes to spare. He picked up his ticket and sat down in a seat near the boarding doors. The second his flight was called he jumped up and went to the door. He just wanted to get this whole experience over with. He just wanted to meet his father, learn a little bit more about why his father never once contacted him and then to go back to the United States, unless he found some awesome reason to stay in Finland.

The flight to Kemi was short, only lasting about an hour or so, or that's what it felt like. Tino didn't really take note of the time.

Tino left the airport at once. It wasn't a very big one, quite small. Kemi was cold. It was snowing and it looked like nothing was going on. But there was, somewhere else in Kemi. It was 20 kilometers to Tornio. Surprisingly, Tino got a taxi driver that would take him to Tornio this late at night, and in the snow. The driver told him that he got the request more than once a day, so it was alright.

If Tino thought that the part of Kemi he saw was boring, then now it seemed ten times more boring. Tornio was very pretty. Whenever he left the cab, he had to stare for a second and let it sink in.

He looked at the web page he printed out, and found the church's address. He'd at least like to see the church before he went there tomorrow in search of his preacher father. To his surprise, when he reached the old church, all the lights were on. He walked up to the large doors and pushed one open. They were unlocked.

Tino walked into the large sanctuary, and called out, "Hello?" He didn't receive a reply, so he walked farther in and called out louder, "Hello?" There were a few footsteps and the sound of a door opening then closing. And a few more footsteps before Tino saw a short man. With black hair and tan skin.

"Yes child?" The tan man approached Tino and looked straight at him.

Tino blinked and then asked him, "Are you Eric Ahonen?" The man nodded, "That I am." Tino gasped and reached into his backpack for his birth certificate. He lifted up the paper so that Mr. Ahonen could see it, "Are you my father?"

Mr. Ahonen looked at Tino and gasped, "My child. There is much to talk about. But we can't talk about it here. You must come to my home and we can discuss matters."

Tino's mood went straight up, the priest was his actual father. Tino nodded and agreed to go with him right away.

The two of them walked to Mr. Ahonen's house. When they approached it, it seemed very small. It was very small. But homey. And sweet. Mr. Ahonen opened the door and let Tino enter first, whenever he shut the door he called for his wife. A short woman with dark hair and tan skin came down the hallway. She gasped when she saw Tino and hurried up to her husband. Mr. Ahonen nodded and introduced Tino, "This is Tino, my...son." His wife's hostess smile turned into an instant frown as she walked into the kitchen. Mr. Ahonen motioned for me to come with him into the kitchen.

They both sat down at the table and Mr. Ahonen's wife offered Tino a cup of coffee that he took happily and thanked her for. She then poured Mr. Ahonen a cup too.

Tino sipped at the hot coffee and Mrs. Ahonen offered him a cookie and since he wasn't hungry he just shook his head and said, "No thank you." She insisted and Tino just shook his head again. Mr. Ahonen looked at Tino and sighed before saying, "Tino, you have to take one." Tino did as he was told and took a small bite out of the sugar cookie.

The two of them just sat at the table and drank their coffee and made small talk. Whenever they finished, Mr. Ahonen showed Tino to the guest bedroom and said good night.

Tino was unable to go straight to sleep, he was so happy that he had finally found his actual father, and that he didn't have to do much searching for him either. But luckily he was able to fall asleep at some point.

The next morning Tino woke up, dressed, and made the bed before heading to the kitchen. When he got in there, Mr. Ahonen was already awake and dressed. He turned to Tino when he heard him enter the kitchen, "Good," he said, "Tino, grab your suitcase and things. I'm taking you to Kemi." Tino was confused but nodded. "There's something I want to tell you." He added before Tino went back into the room.

Mr. Ahonen led Tino to his car and allowed him to put his suitcase in the back. The two men got into the car and started to drive back to Kemi. Mr. Ahonen didn't look at Tino. "Tino, I didn't want to tell you this, but it's for your own good. I'm not your actual father." Tino whipped his head around to face him, "What?"

Mr. Ahonen still looked straight ahead, "The name on your birth certificate is mine. And the name is the one given specifically to me. But I am not your blood father." Tino whimpered, "Then if you're not my blood father, then who is?"

Mr. Ahonen shook his head, "I don't know Tino. That is a question you will have to ask your mother. Go to the snow castle hotel in Kemi and look at the staff list. There will be a name there that will look very familiar to you. That is the place your mother works. Go there to ask about your father."

The rest of the ride was done in silence. When they reached Kemi, Tino got his things by himself. Mr. Ahonen rolled down the window and said, "Goodbye Tino. It was very nice meeting you. Good luck finding your father." before speeding off back to Tornio.

Tino sat down on the curb and cried. He was back at square one. And this time, to figure out who his father was, he'd have to talk to his mother that left him when he was a child. He couldn't look at a birth certificate. He wiped away his tears before standing up and going to the nearest hotel.

After Tino reached a hotel, checked in, and placed his suitcase down, he decided that he needed to take a walk. He locked his hotel door behind him and slipped the key into the pocket of his heavy black fleece jacket.

Tino walked and walked until he reached a frozen pond. He remembered going ice skating at his grandmother's house when he was a child. He set a foot down on the ice and tapped it a few times. Frozen solid. He walked out onto the ice and decided to 'skate' in his normal shoes and think about all the good memories of ice skating with Peter and Mr. Väinämöinen. He was in the midst of all those good memories when everything went black.

Tino woke up in an odd room. The last thing he remembered was sliding on a frozen pond. When his eyes adjusted, he saw two faces looming over him. One had wild blond hair, the other had emotionless blue eyes. The one with wild blond hair laughed and said, "Hey Norge! He's awake!" The one with the emotionless eyes growled, "You think I didn't notice you idiot."

'What the hell, who are these people,' Tino thought before trying to sit up. The one called Norge pushed him back down. "Where am I?" Tino managed to spit out. "My mother's house." Norge said simply.

"What's your name?" The wild blond haired one asked with a little too much enthusiasm. "Um...Tino...what's your name?" The man laughed, "I'm Danmark, and this is Norge!" He wrapped Norge in a big hug and the smaller male shoved him away.

A short, plump woman that wore too much gold jewelry walked in and said something in an odd tongue that Tino didn't recognize. Norge turned to face her and replied in the same strange language. Norge turned back to Tino and asked, "My mother wants to know how you are feeling. Does your head or any other part of your body hurt?" Danmark snickered and Norge shot him a death glare. Tino rubbed the back of his head, "My head does a little, but not much." Norge's mother looked at Norge expectantly.

Norge said something to her again in the language and she nodded and said something to Tino. "She wants to check your head." Norge told him. Tino sat up so that the old woman could feel his head. She said one word only, and it was a word Tino could understand. "Tea." The woman let him rest his head back down on the pillow before running off. Tino looked down at his clothes, and he wasn't wearing his black fleece jacket. "Where's my jacket! That had my hotel key in it!" Tino sat up and looked around for it. Danmark just laughed, "It's okay. I found your key and took it back to the hotel."

Tino looked at him, "What about my stuff?" Danmark laughed again, "Don't worry, I picked it up for you." He moved out of the way so Tino could see his suitcase.

Tino sighed in relief, the little bit of stuff he owned was safe. Norge's mom came back with a glass of steaming tea for him. She handed him the glass and said, "Drink." Tino looked at the liquid in the cup, it didn't look like any tea he had drank before. Tino mentally shrugged and downed the liquid, it was a soothing herbal tea.

Tino heard Norge's mother say something, and Norge turned to Tino, "She said that you have to stay here for a week to make sure there's nothing seriously wrong with your head."

"What!" Tino gasped, "But I have to get to the snow castle. There's someone I have to talk to there!"

Danmark laughed, "You're going there too? Me and Norge are going to go there too, you can come with us!"

Tino moaned and slumped back onto the bed. At this rate, finding his father would take forever. Norge and Danmark looked at each other and then back at Tino, "We could see if mother would let you leave on Thursday..." Tino peeked an eye at Norge, "What day is it today."

"It's Tuesday..." Norge replied. Tino nodded, "That sounds good to me." And then he fell asleep.

When Tino woke up, the only person in the room was Norge's mom and a silver haired boy. Norge's mother held up a bowl of soup and handed it to him. "Eat." is all she said. She pointed to a glass of tea and said, "Drink." Tino nodded and the woman looked to the silver headed boy, "Ísland." The boy looked up and she nodded towards Tino. The boy nodded and Norge's mom walked out.

The boy approached Tino and said, "Hello. I'm Ísland, but you can call me Ice. You must be Tino, Norge told me about you." He stroked the puffin in his arms and Tino looked at it. "This is Puffin." Ice sat the bird on Tino's lap and it snuggled into the blankets.

Tino ate his soup and drank his tea without saying a word, Ice did most of the talking. "I was told to stay with you until Norge and Danmark came back from doing the shopping." Iceland paused for a second before asking a question, "Where do you live?"

Tino looked at Ice, "Right now, I live right here in this bed, but I used to live in New York." Ice looked at Tino, " You mean, you don't have a home? A family?"

Tino shook his head, "I have a little brother, but he's staying at a mental institution. He's autistic. Which reminds me, I should write him."

Ice smiled, "We have some paper and a pen for you to use. You need to write him! I would feel so upset if my big brother didn't write me if we were apart."

Tino cocked his head to the side, "Who's your older brother?"

Ice looked back at him from the desk he was getting paper, a pen, and a clipboard from. "Oh, I'm Norge's little brother..." He handed Tino the writing supplies and then sat back down on the chair he had been sitting in. Puffin jumped from the bed and into Ice's lap.

Tino started writing, he wrote about where he was, what he had been doing and that he was going to the snow castle-he left out the part about finding their mother and his father. He turned to Ice, "What's your mother's name?"

Ice blinked, "Oh, it's Bjork."

Tino continued writing, saying he was staying with a nice lady named Bjork and her family. Tino told Peter to not write back, because he wouldn't be staying long enough for him to get a reply. Tino also promised that he would be back to visit him soon. Even though Tino didn't really see the truth in that statement. He told Peter how much he loved him and that he'd be sure to write again.

Ice handed Tino an envelope and he placed the letter in it and sealed it up. Tino wrote the address on the front and handed it to Ice who put a stamp on it and promised that he would place it in the mail the second Norge and Danmark got back. And, as if on cue, Danmark came waltzing in with Norge following behind him.

Danmark came up behind Ice and slapped him on the back, "Ice, you're free! Go have fun." Ice picked up the letter, his puffin, and waved goodbye to Tino before walking out the door.

Danmark walked over to Tino, "Did you have fun with boring old Ice?" Tino nodded, "He was very talkative and interesting."

Danmark looked confused, "That's odd, he's always very quiet and moody..." Norway smirked, "Actually, it's not. He's always been talkative, it's just around you that he becomes quiet and moody."

Danmark laughed, "That's just because he's intimidated by my awesomeness. Or he's just jealous because I get all of your attention." He gave Norge a big hug and Norge rolled his eyes, "Yeah" he said sarcastically, "That's it." He shoved Danmark off of him and sighed, "I'm pretty sure it's just because he hates you."

Tino laughed at their argument. Norge and Danmark looked at him. Norge decided to say something, "So...Tino are you feeling better?" Tino nodded and Norge spoke again, "That's good. Mother decided to let you leave on Thursday." Tino smiled, "That's good!"

Danmark looked at his watch, "Well Norge, I have to go. I'll be back a little later okay." Norge nodded and Danmark laughed, "Nooorge~ can I have a goodbye kiss?" He leaned in and all he got was a harsh shove to the chest and a, "Leave you idiot!" Norge turned around completely red-faced and sat down in the chair Ice had been sitting in earlier.

The two of them sat in silence until Norge decided to break the quiet. "Tino. You haven't gotten to see the majority of the house yet have you?" Tino shook his head, the only two rooms he had seen were the bedroom and bathroom. Norge nodded, "Well I want you to see the den, because mother told me I should get you to walk around a bit." Tino got up with ease and scratched the back of his neck. Norge stood up too, he was just a bit taller than Tino and he guessed that Norge was just a year or so older than him.

Norge led him to the living room, and there were only a few things in there. A grand piano, a old-looking couch, and a rug. But the walls had lots of pictures on them. The majority of them were of Norge and Ice. But there were a couple of Bjork too. He looked at one that was completely out of place. Tino looked to Norge, "Hey Norge, who's this?" Tino pointed to a picture of a man.

Norge looked at it, "That's my uncle, Bjorn." Tino looked at him, "Does he live here too?"

Norge shook his head, "No. He was a little bit crazy. Jumped off a bridge to commit suicide when he was in his late twenties.

"Oh." Tino said. They finished their look around the living room and then the rest of the house and when they finished, the two of them talked a bit until Danmark got back and Tino fell asleep.

The next day, they all packed, and Tino made sure all of his stuff was there, which it was. He took a nice shower and changed into some warm clothes.

When he got out, Norge and Danmark were waiting for him. The three of them left for the snow castle together. It didn't take that long for them to reach it. After they checked in, Tino told them that he'd meet them in the room, he had to check the staff list first. Danmark nodded and him and Norge left for the room the three of them would be sharing for a night, the hotel was too expensive to stay in any longer. There was the name. Brenda Harkki. Tino looked at which department she was working. The snowmobile tours. Tino went to the front desk and scheduled himself a tour, paying the large fee. He only had about three-thousand dollars left in the bank, and Tino hoped it was enough for him to live off of until he was able to find a job. He went to the room and told Danmark and Norge that he'd scheduled himself for a tour and he would be back later as he slipped on the snow suit that the lady at the front desk gave him. Tino left the room and went to meet his tour guide. It wasn't his mom, but they would be meeting up with her later.

The man greeted Tino and led him to the snowmobiles. Both of them got on one and the guide showed him how to operate the mobile. Tino caught on real quick and they drove through the snow and forest until they reached a small cabin. Inside the cabin there was supposedly food and hot chocolate/coffee. Also inside the cabin was his mother.

When they walked inside the cabin. His mother and another male tour guide greeted them and introduced themselves. Tino introduced himself and his mother frowned. But she mustered up a fake smile and the four of them drank coffee and ate some sweets. The two male guides were laughing and sharing jokes until Tino's mother said that they were running out of firewood and asked the two men if they would go and get some more. They agreed to.

Brenda stood up and got herself some more coffee. She may be older, but she still looked like the mother Tino remembered. Brenda started talking, "I see you came to find me. I should have known that either you or Harold would have tried to find me." She sighed in annoyance, "Shouldn't me leaving and not keeping in touch been enough of a hint that I didn't want to see you!" Tino replied, "I'm not pleased on having to see the woman who left me at the age of eight. But I only have one question to ask you. Who is my real father?"

Brenda scoffed, "Didn't you read your birth certificate? It's Eric Ahonen." Tino sighed, "No it's not. He's just the man on the birth certificate. He told me that he wasn't my blood father. I want to know who my actual father is!"

Brenda sighed and sat down, "I will tell you. But if I do you have to leave right away and never, ever come back." Tino nodded, he never wanted to see the woman again anyways.

Brenda continued, "I couldn't go through the abortion. You were the product of me being raped when I was younger. I don't remember the man's name. But he was pretty crazy. I was living here in Kemi when it happened. And not long after it did, he committed suicide by jumping of a bridge around here and into the lake. Now whenever Langer gets back the two of you must leave. And you must never ever come back. Alright." Tino nodded and they sat in silence.

Whenever Langer came back in Tino told him that he needed to head back because he was feeling sick. And Tino really was. He just figured out that his father was Bjork's brother Bjorn. And that he was Norge and Ice's cousin. And Bjork's nephew.

They sped back to the hotel and when they got back Tino was genuinely upset, but put on a facade for Norge and Danmark, so they could enjoy the rest of their small stay.

After the stay, Tino decided that he wanted to cross the border into Sweden and start himself a new life. He only stayed in Kemi long enough to get Norge, Danmark, Ice, and Bjork's mailing addresses. He wanted to be able to write his new friends and relatives, but he would never tell them that they were related.

In Sweden, he met a museum tour guide and the love of his life. The man's name was Berwald. The two of them got married a year after they met and they adopted a little boy that Tino named Peter, after his younger brother. He promised Peter that one day he would be able to meet the uncle he was named after. Tino also was open about telling Peter that he was adopted and who his blood parents were and how they died, so that his son would never have to go through the same thing he did.

A/N: I finished it! I hope it was good. Like I said, this doesn't follow the exact story line of "Let The Northern Lights Erase Your Name." So go find that book and read it! If you liked this, you'll love that book.

Please Review~!


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